Amazoness
"Amazoness" (アマゾネス Amazonesu) is an archetype of female EARTH-Attribute Warrior-Type monsters (with the exception of "Amazoness Tiger", who is a Beast-Type monster) that were introduced in Labyrinth of Nightmare, with further support in Magician's Force and Duelist Revolution. Their names include "Amazoness", with the exception of "Amazon Archer", which in Gold Series 3 was changed to "Amazoness Archer". Although "The Unfriendly Amazon" is similar in name, it is not considered an "Amazoness". Mai Valentine and Tania have both used "Amazoness" cards in the anime. The monsters are based on the Amazons from Greek mythology. Play Style The "Amazoness" monsters have average ATK and effects, and are designed either to weaken the opponent's monsters or strengthen themselves. Key cards include "Amazoness Village", "Amazoness Paladin", "Amazoness Tiger", and "Amazoness Queen". With the additions to the "Amazoness" archetype in Duelist Revolution, they have more support for field-flooding and field control. Using "Amazoness Village", Amazoness Willpower, and "Queen's Pawn" allows them to swarm the field much faster and more easily. "Amazoness Queen", "Amazoness Heirloom", and "Amazoness Scouts" can help keep your "Amazoness" on the field while you increase their ATK with "Amazoness Village" and "Amazoness Fighting Spirit". While their ATK is often weak for their Level, cards such as "Amazoness Tiger" and "Amazoness Paladin" increase in strength relative to the number of other "Amazoness" on the field. "Amazoness Trainee" increases in strength for every monster she destroys. "Amazoness Queen" protects all "Amazoness" monsters from destruction in battle, while "Amazoness Sage" can destroy one Spell or Trap Card at the end of each attack; with these two cards alone, a player can defend his or her monsters, while slowly dismantling an opponent's back row. Strengths Common build strategies for this archetype include: * Solidarity Build. Run multiple copies of Solidarity to give each of your Amazoness an 800 ATK boost. This build requires eliminating all non-Warrior cards from your deck, including Amazoness Tiger. * Burden Build. Use Burden of the Mighty to weaken an opponent's monsters, making them more susceptible to attacks by your medium-strength Amazoness monsters. * Synchro Build. Warrior synchros such as Sword Master, T.G. Striker, Comrade Swordsman of Landstar and X-Saber Pashuul can be employed to summon Synchro Warriors such as Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth and the X-Saber synchros. Rose, Warrior of Revenge, a 4-star Tuner, can be used in conjunction with most four-star Amazoness (that is, every Amazoness except Amazoness Queen, Amazoness Blowpiper and Amazoness Scouts) to synchro summon Colossal Fighter, which gains an additional 100 ATK for every Amazoness in the graveyard. With a Synchro build, Amazoness players must use their best judgment in using their Amazoness as Synchro material, versus relying on them for a "flood the field" strategy. They can also be used with most Naturia synchro monsters: Naturia Beast, Naturia Barkion and Naturia Landoise. Naturia Beast mills, while it negates spells and sending more monsters or unwanted spells. Naturia Barkion removes cards from the grave, while it negates traps and setting up for solidarity or unwanted types. Weaknesses Massive field control comes at a cost. As EARTH monsters, "Amazoness" have trouble when fighting Decks with a strong focus of Spell and Trap Cards. "Amazoness" Decks cannot break through Spells and Traps that can stop their attacks, like "Messenger of Peace", "Level Limit - Area B", and "Gravity Bind". Cards such as "Dust Tornado", "Mystical Space Typhoon", "Seven Tools of the Bandit", and Xyz Monsters can counter such plays. "Amazoness" Decks may struggle against Decks designed to counter an opponent's Spells and Traps, as most "Amazoness" builds rely on cards such as "Solidarity" and "Amazoness Village" to flood the field and boost their monster's ATK. Cards such as "Dark Bribe", "Judgment of Anubis", "Solemn Warning" and "Solemn Judgment" prove useful against such Decks. Due to their lack of draw power outside of "Pot of Duality", if one of these key cards is countered, the Deck will stall and wither until a new Continuous Spell Card is drawn. This also applies to important monsters before the strategy can get running. Recommended cards Monsters * Amazoness Chain Master * Amazoness Paladin * Amazoness Queen * Amazoness Sage * Amazoness Scouts * Amazoness Swords Woman * Amazoness Tiger * D.D. Assailant * D.D. Warrior Lady * Amazoness Trainee * Rose, Warrior of Revenge * Warrior Lady of the Wasteland Spells * Amazoness Fighting Spirit * Amazoness Heirloom * Amazoness Village * Pot of Avarice * United We Stand * The Warrior Returning Alive * Reinforcement of the Army Traps * Amazoness Archers * Amazoness Willpower * Desperate Tag * Dramatic Rescue * Queen's Pawn * Spiritual Earth Art - Kurogane Extra Deck * Number 39: Utopia * Colossal Fighter Solidarity/Synchro Build Monsters * Amazoness Paladin * Amazoness Queen * Amazoness Sage * Amazoness Swords Woman * Amazoness Trainee * Comrade Swordsman of Landstar * D.D. Warrior * Marauding Captain * The Immortal Bushi * Warrior Lady of the Wasteland * X-Saber Pashuul Extra Deck * Colossal Fighter * Driven Daredevil * Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth * Lightning Warrior * Naturia Barkion * Naturia Beast * X-Saber Urbellum * X-Saber Wayne Spells * Amazoness Village * Creature Swap * Enemy Controller * Pot of Avarice * Solidarity Traps * Royal Decree Censoring * When the "Amazoness" cards are played in the English dubbed anime, they are re-drawn to be less revealing in appearance. While in TCG until recently, most of them weren't censored, unlike similar female monsters such as "Harpies".